WWE Payback 2016: In-depth analysis of booking decisions

Owens beats Zayn

It has got as personal as it can

Frankly the result of this match didn’t matter. Considering the star powers, the match could have gone any way and WWE could have progressed the feud to the next level in a believable manner. That is the advantage you get when you book a proper feud like Zayn-Owens.

Considering that the result didn’t matter, let’s analyze the match in itself. The match had ample time and both Zayn and Owens utilized the time to good effect. Owens established himself as the perfect heel all through the match and Zayn was the tenacious babyface fans had supported all along.

Owens victory was rather a surprise to be frank. If Zayn had won, Owens could have attacked him after the match without much cause and extended the feud. But by making Owens win, WWE had put themselves in a difficult position to explain why a babyface Zayn would attack Owens. If it had been anyother superstars in question then it would have bade a big plot hole.

But Zayn and Owens rivalry is as personal as it could get and frankly fans don’t want Zayn-Owens feud to be over and this gave WWE some options to play around with and they took a bold risk. And it looks like it paid off.

Verdict: 3.5/5